The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1887-03-18

surroundings.
AFTER \ Long sLEEP.
This fact ID no argument 10 prove tha
old pric:s ought still to prevail. The
iinding oil II god mine may well change
the values Of real estate at any point
Even tho waking up, alter long sleep, to
realization OF advantages that really OK
ist, hut that have lain dormant and map
precIated in tho past, IL not q poor reason
by any meaua, Tor an advance In prices
And this is the alleged reason ior the
great advance that has taken place ut De.
catur, Sheffield and Florcnce, and, for
that matter, tho only reason. All that
eSiats to-day III tho way OF natural re-,
sources has been known, even II not ap
preCiRtad, for IN indefinite time in tho
past. Tho enterprise and the meana to
maze Bald resources available was the
great lack.
All n once tue example OF tho success
oil birmingham attracted the attention o!
man named f. Q. Gordon, and he, after
making two successful railroad vontuyes,
anu Thereby gaining capiialis,iC strength
anu following, undertook 10 build up Il
rival TO birmingham s. Sheffield, and did
actually suCceed two years ago in market
INK large trAC! Of land at that point, pre-.
VloEsly vaIus!PHR, ut tr0mandous figures,
On thh theory that tho Tenuessee river
would, IN connection with railroads and
certNa ore d"poaitg, huild mp Pittsburgh
~ lAat point. In the two years that have
since elapsed village has been built. but
no FitEburgh has been assured BY any
means. Gotdon, however, made money
lor himself aud associates out OF tho en-
terprise, and tho stock OF their land com.
pany shot up like rocket last fall TO 80
from AGont 49, The latest quotation |
hayo recently heard for ii 10 l65.
=, This movement at Sheffield begot e;m-
liar movement at Florsncr, inst Hcross the
river, an old town Of |, 800 inhabitants, and
town lots IN its former staguant limi.s and
the Vicnsge have been sold ut q grea: all
vance on former prices. 1t, too, hGa land
company.
Anu now cone in my narrative to the
tOWn Ol Decatur, another old town on the
ienueseen river, and 10 its boom under
the anSpicea OF thu same magical Gordon.
After starting Sheffield on ita career he
conceived the ideG OF building up q rival
10 MS own handiwork at point fur
ther up the Tennessee. Perhaps should
not Say that he had first squetIad all the
lnics out OF the Sheffield orange, although
might not DO far wrong II were 10 ex-
press myself 10 that very way. At oil
events he saw his opportunity TO get up
another boom, and 80 no set to work with
nus characteristic energy and secured op-
Eous on orc and coal property near by and
lSr oil, as well as on farming land all round
the ancient town, anu these options and
purchaser he put into q land company on
4 nominal basis OF seven and hall mil.
mons OF dollars, the sctual ground floor
pfic" oil the stock being, however, only 20
cenia on tho dollar. He and his associates
pald Six hundred thousand dollars for all
the property referred to and sold it to the
ground floor purchaaers OF the stock at
ono million. Four hundred thousand OF
th's money remains in the treasury OF the
company for the development OF tho
property, Rnd also two millions and a
hNi oil the seven and half millions Of
capital stock.
THE DECATUR BOOM.
Having heard great deal about this
Decatur business while sojournins with
my friend, Mr.. Barclay, in Northern
Alabama. l stopped of on my way hither
al the place itself in order to form some
idea Of its real basis for future Importance.
10 this end spent Ru evening with Judge
Bond, the general manager OF the com.
pSny, and next to MINOR Gordon its con-
trolling spirit, and he, rs isr as could
Judge, laid open the whole scheme to Mr..
Barclay and myself, exhibiting to US his
maps, his applications for industrial sites,
and his locations for parks, depots and
hotels. He.also showed us specimens OF
the ore owned by the company some forty
miles north Of the river, mostly brown
hematte ore, and told us OF the coal up
the river, amt of how the former has to
be brought TO Decatur BY q rsil.oad soon
to DO built and how it could be brought
even now by round shout railroad
already built; and the coal could and
would be brought down in barges at the
very minimum Of cost on the waters OF the
Tennessee.
Two professional draughtsmen were at
work in tho room In which all this CONVEX.
sstion occurred; busy by the light of their
i9mps laying OF streets, parks, iurnscs
sites OF the coming city, aud submitting